Strength Within
by HallowRain8587
Summary: A new widow copes with a world beyond her control. A dark wizard is paralyzed. The world is upside down following the
1. Chapter 1 1 May 1998

**Disclaimer: I do not own, nor ever will own any of the characters and places that are the sole product of the imagination of J.K. Rowling.**

 **Written for Hogwarts School Charms Class**

 **Assignment 1: Dialogue prompt: "You just don't understand, do you?"**

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May 1, 1998 closed gray and cloudy. Andromeda's mood was on par with the day's gloom. First her son-in-law, Remus Lupin, had bid her a hasty good-bye as he left for Hogwarts. Members of the Order had been summoned due to a disturbance. Soon he was followed by Nymphadora who pressed a kiss on her mother's cheek as she laid the sleeping baby in her arms. Her daughter and son-in-law had sparred verbally because Remus wanted to protect his wife and son. Dora on the other hand had was a trained auror and felt the "Light" could use her talents. Dora's hair had turned a mixture of fiery red and blazing orange showing her inner anger and determination to be included in the danger that was ahead. The foreboding air hung around the small cottage like a black funeral veil over the face of the widow. The depression was palpable and the sun just could not break through the clouds. She knew that the final battle against Voldemort was looming over them. One did not need to be a seer to know that this would not end well no matter which side won. She felt so helpless, let useful. She was excluded from fighting, but she had the next generation to care for and protect. After laying the sleeping Teddy Lupin, with his blue hair in his cot, she returned to the sitting room. There Andromeda approached the table in the center of the room. There she lit a white candle for protection, a pink candle for perseverance and a dark blue one for loyalty to the light and sent the wishes to the winds. She did this knowing that three was a powerful magical number and would add more strength to her hopes.

The Order had been made aware that things were moving quickly and that Aberforth had let Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley into the Hogs' Head. He had summoned Neville Longbottom from the Room of Requirement to lead the trio into Hogwarts. The battle would begin soon because this was where there would be a last stand. Both sides knew that the one that won Hogwarts would win the war. They also knew that Voldemort has specifically given orders that he, and he alone, would be the one to kill Harry Potter.

The night wore on and it felt like there were a series of earthquakes engulfing the whole of Britain. Indeed there were reports on the muggle news about these. Their Prime Minister had given a press conference and tried to assure the populace that the emergency protocols were in place and those in danger were being evacuated from an area in central Scotland. The rest of the country was to remain in place until the danger had passed. Andromeda smiled warily and thought of Ted, her knight in shining armor, who had been a television news reader/reporter for the muggle news service until he had to go into hiding. She had word only a week ago on Potterwatch that he had been captured and killed by Death Eaters. Sighing she rose and went to pick up the whimpering baby.

She hated waiting and not knowing more than anything, but right now her priority was taking care that the next generation lived. Andromeda pulled Teddy close and hugged him. She placed a kiss on his head then walked across the room and sat in a rocker. She was not aware that she had fallen asleep until she was startled awake by a voice from her floo. "Andromeda, are you awake? I need your help!" came the urgent call from Minerva McGonagall.

"Do you want to come through, or do you need me there?" Andromeda replied. "If you need me to come, I need a house-elf to keep an eye on Teddy."

"No, I just need you to open your wards so I can get a patient through for you to tend," Minerva replied. "Don't jump to conclusions, just have something to lay him on. We can move him when we have two of us. I will have Hermione help me with the side-along."

Andromeda quickly laid Teddy on the sofa and cleared the dining table. She was throwing a large comforter over it for some semblance of padding as she heard the pop of her favorite Professor coming through the wards. She opened the door and then helped them to get through into the dining room. Only then did she realize that the dark haired wizard the dirty, battle-worn, under nourished witch and the professor were transporting was Severus Snape. She could now see why Minerva asked her not to jump to conclusions.

"Snake bite to his neck," said Hermione succinctly. "Only he would think ahead to have an anti-venom vial on him. Well, I have one, but I've been on the run for almost a year …. Damn, I'm rambling again."

"What in the name of Morgana are you thinking? Why are you bringing HIM here? You know that Remus and Nymphadora have left Teddy with me, well Dora did when Remus left her behind. Does anyone not think I am able to do anything because of Ted? Stop walking on egg-shells and get to the point. I am not a porcelain doll to put on a shelf. **You just don't understand, do you?** I am a rubber baby that can be drug through the mud," Andromeda asked. "Oh, hi, Hermione!" she went on. "When did you get back?"

The professor and young witch continued arranging Professor Snape on the table, which they had lengthened to comfortably fit his height. "I need more of the blood replenishing potion and anti-venom," Minerva stated. "What else do you have in your bag that would be helpful?" she then asked as she took the two vials from her student. "We need to hurry and get back. Pamona is in need of a lot of help and they will be transporting many to St. Mungo's."

"Why don't I leave some Essence of dittany and some pain reliever potion, plus extra of these," said Hermione as she pulled the medicines from her beaded bag which was obviously charmed with an undetectable extension charm.

"Then hurry girl," the professor prodded.

"You know what to do, Dromeda?" She nodded. "Good, then we will be gone."

"MINERVA!" Andromeda was shouting to get her attention. "What am I doing and why did you bring Severus here?"

"Oh, sorry," Minerva answered. "You know how he was helping us and the other side didn't know. His 'fearless leader' decided he was expendable. Hermione mentioned something about the elder wand and Dumbledore and Harry checking his memories. She went to check on him and found him still alive and called me to move him before someone else found him. Yours' was the safest place we could think of off the top of our heads. We will be back when we can."

"I can't take care of him and Teddy, too!" Andromeda exclaimed. "Both will be a handful when awake."

"You can do it," her professor replied. "I know of what you are capable, more than you do I would wager."

"Here, you might need this," Hermione said as she offered another two vials. "One is a pepper-up potion for you and the other is phoenix tears under stasis. I used a couple of drops earlier, along with a bezor when I first found him."

With that the witches were gone. Andromeda sank into the rocking chair. Her gray day had just darkened by a couple of shades. Then she heard the whimper of the baby awakening. She rose again and picked up the blue-haired boy and cuddled him close. She did that bouncing walk that mothers do when comforting a baby as she crossed the room to check on the sleeping wizard.

"You are, you know," he whispered. "Stronger than anyone thinks. You're Slytherin and you can do it."


	2. Chapter 2 Going Nowhere Fast

**Disclaimer: The amazing JKR owns these characters.**

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 **Chapter 2. Going Nowhere Fast**

He awoke with a start, but was not certain he was awake or it was a continuation of the nightmare. He could not move, but he was certain that he was no longer on the floor of the Shrieking Shack. He could not see, but he could no longer smell the dust and mold that had filled the building for years. There was no scent of decaying wood and disintegrating plaster. The acrid smell of blood spilled over time was no longer in the air. He could not smell the odor of angst from the werewolf who had occupied the building so often over the past twenty years.

He was aware of the sounds of someone sleeping nearby. It was accompanied by the scent of a woman. Not the aroma of the shampoo she used (the cherry and almond aroma was nice), but the odor of the essence of her being. It wasn't the smell of fresh linen that had been laundered and hung out in the sunshine to dry. That scent was there, too. No this is the unique pheromone issued by a witch. He was aware that he had encountered this scent before, but it had been some time since he had renewed its acquaintance.

He tried to speak, but the pain in his throat was so sharp that it brought back the nightmare he had tossed off. He remembered Nagini, Voldemort's snake, and the dagger-like stabbing of her fangs into the side of his throat. He tried to reach up and feel the wound marks, but his arms would not move. As he tried to turn his head he found he could not do so.

He thought he was opening his eyes, but all was black. Now he was feeling panic move into the pit of his stomach. Who was in the room with him? What was going on? When is something to happen? What day is it? Where was he? Why was he here? How did he get here?

" _Take a deep breath,"_ he thought. _"Good, you are still alive. Not good, you are supposed to be dead."_ His thoughts went on as though he were carrying on a conversation with … with whom? " _Is it over? It seems eerily calm to be waging a war, but where am I? The other person is stirring- Wait, I hear a baby. Who has a baby?"_

"Are you awake?" the kind voice asked. He heard the creaking of the rocker as she rose. Her footsteps echoed as she tiptoed across the floor. The quiet noise was deafening.

" _Definitely a woman."_ Her scent hovered over him and mixed with her magic he could almost see her aura. Well, not see, but he could feel the electricity of it. He could sense it. She was alive, but what was he. He tried to answer and open his eyes, but nothing worked.

"Well, I am going to tend to Teddy and bring a pot of tea back. Maybe you will be awake then," the voice said.

" _Who's Teddy? Why would someone assume I know who Teddy is? Nott? No, Theo Senior is not in any shape to procreate and Theo Junior was too busy avoiding conflict to find a pure-blood witch to engage with. Ew, not going there. Don't want to think about seventy year-old men or seventeen year-old boys having sex. I don't even think Nott Senior is seventy, but Merlin he looks old. I wonder how old Merlin would be if he were alive today. Am I alive? I cannot move. I cannot see. I cannot talk. I can hear. I can feel pain. I can smell. I can think-though it is a bit rambling."_

He heard the sound of someone entering a nearby room by floo. The voices were hushed, but he could make out what they were saying. "No change," Almond cherry said.

"It's been three days," came voice two.

This was also a woman. Older. " _Was there a hint of a brogue?"_ It might be Minerva. If she were to come near he would be able to tell for certain.

A younger woman's voice was next. "I hope I did okay by saving him."

His ears perked up. " _Are my ears deceiving me? That sounds like a student, no make that former student, one of the brightest he had the privilege to teach. Who am I kidding? If I am dead, I might as well be cliché. Hermione Granger is the brightest student to have graced the halls of Hogwarts. If given the chance to complete her schooling she would, undoubtedly, score more N.E.W.T.s than anyone in the history of the school."_ He strained to listen and not allow his brain to wander.

She was continuing, "… so, he's still alive. Hasn't shown any other signs?"

Almond cherry answered, "I talked to him when Teddy woke up, but he didn't even move."

"Do you think he might be in a coma? I know when I was petrified my brain was still working and I could hear and smell and sense the things going on around me." Hermione commented, "I just couldn't seem to come out to play."

Old woman replied, "Poppy said to keep him comfortable and she would be here shortly, but she didn't want to create suspicion by disappearing with us. Harry was going to talk to Kingsley."

" _Damn, Biddies. Talking about me like I was a piece of meat instead of a man. Make that a vegetable. Why would Harry want to talk to Kingsley? Why are they keeping my location a secret? Why hasn't Poppy been here to see me if they aren't going to ship me off to St. Mungo's? I need to relieve myself really soon or it isn't going to be pretty."_

The women came back into the room. Yes, he could tell it was Minerva by her gait and the last speech. Now he smelled the woods and heather on her, but also the smell of smoke and curse residue lingered. " _Wonder who has been getting the sharp end of her wand lately. And her tongue, jeez how that woman could make a person wither under a good tongue-lashing."_

It was slowly coming back to him. Hermione and Minerva had brought him to Andromeda's after finding him in the Shrieking Shack. He had taken anti-venom, but there had been so much blood loss. He had no strength and could not move. Hermione had stuffed the bezoar down his throat. That's the acrid taste that had been lingering in his mouth. Then the stinging of the phoenix tears on his neck. " _Where in the world had the girl, no woman, gotten those?"_ He continued his stroll down memory lane. They brought him here and unceremoniously left him on the hard surface of what? What was he lying on?

"Poppy gave me this to dose him with if he were not responding," Hermione said. "It has **foxglove** in it. It isn't quite like digitalis that they give muggles for cardiac therapy nor seizures, but it should wake him up. She said it was one of the potions he developed that works with the mandrake which wakens the petrified."

"Can you help me move him upstairs to the guest room?" Cherry almond, no Andromeda asked. "The bed is softer than the dining table and he can have more privacy."

" _No wonder this is such a hard place to lie. What would Mother say with me and my feet on the dining table? That is really bad when you are visiting. Oh, and my butt, too? This is the strangest-"_

" _Hey! Be careful. That's my head you just bumped into the door when you levitated me, Minerva."_ He felt his body moving again around a corner.

" _Dromeda, can't you steer any better. It is like being on a roller coaster. Up and down, up and down."_ They must be moving him up the stairs like he was a piece of furniture.

" _Hermione, you are dropping my feet. Yes, up a little more. No, that tickles and I cannot move. Stop! I am going crazy. Stop it you stupid dunderhead!"_ Giddy now and unable to laugh, his unseeing eyes were tearing.

"Hey, I think he just reacted to something in the levitation. His toes twitched right after you bumped his head," Hermione giggled. "Wonder if one was a reaction to the other. I wonder-" She continued to laugh at his predicament. "He cannot be ticklish, can he?"

" _The bushy haired, know-it-all was really getting on my nerves. That is if my nerves could feel anything. Okay, she is totally irritating, but if it tickles, I must be able to feel."_

Then he was alone again. This time he sunk into the feather bed and was cuddled by a down comforter. " _Damn, it is too hot in here,"_ he shouted in his mind. He tried to kick off some of the bedding. No luck. Then sleep overtook him again.

" _It must be morning,"_ he thought. " _I can feel the sun shining on my face through the window. I wonder if I can open my eyes."_ He let out a deep breath, then inhaled another. The window was open and the fresh air filled his lungs.

"Severus, are you awake?" Cherry almond asked. He would never think of her as Andromeda first again, she was Cherry almond. "I brought some warm, wet cloths to soak your eyes. There seem to be an abundance of crust built up. You must have been crying awfully hard for that to happen."

He felt the soothing cloths being laid across his eyes. His finger twitched, then a toe. Maybe he could move again on his own.

"Hermione brought more medicine and your wand. She is such a thoughtful girl," Cherry almond continued her soliloquy. "She has been here most of the last two days and nights. She wanted to be here when you awoke, but she was falling asleep on her feet so I sent her off to sleep."

The cool air swept across his face as the cloth was removed. Then he felt the gentle washing of his face and care around his eyes.

"Thank," he squawked out. " _It wasn't even a complete thought and it was singular_. _It should have been plural or had another word attached."_ He opened his eyes to the smiling face of his Florence Nightingale.

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Charms Class Assignment #2 **#2: Anti-Apparition Charm**

Prompt: Plant: Foxglove


	3. Chapter 3 We Got Away

**Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns the characters, I am completing the story as I would like it written.**

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 **We Got Away**

As he lay on the bed, Severus Snape was bored. He was tired of looking out the window. He was tired of the "do-gooders" who swept in. They aped platitudes and pretended to listen to his stuttering, sputtering attempts to speak. They nodded and then quickly left with empty promises to return. He had three regular visitors and a meddling Mediwitch named Poppy. He counted the leaves on the branch outside his window. He counted the apple blossoms. He could smell their delicate scent. But he could only count the things so many times. Today was a cloudy and misty day and he could smell the rain as well.

He was tired of hearing about the war dead. He mourned each and every one on both sides. The loss of the children was the biggest waste. They were an unfulfilled promise, a missing hope, and a lost dream. The loss of parents and grandparents who thought they were fighting for the right was the loss of the guidance of the remaining children. Who would reunite the nation? The _Daily Prophet_ was a total waste of parchment and spouted drivel, rumors and grabbed headlines with yellow journalism. The _Witch Weekly_ was nothing more than a glossy mirror of the _Prophet_ with more pictures. The _Quibbler_ was an interesting bit of fluff and if you could read between the lines, you could find truth. However, he sorely disliked being read to by one of the three meddling witches that seemed to invade his life.

He still could not move, his voice was weak. Damn it his mind was as sharp now as it had been when he was seventeen. He had the wisdom to know not to act on his impulses now, but he could not move.

Whoosh! He heard Cherry Almond's floo spring to life. He strained his ears to hear what was being said below. It was a male voice. _"That cannot be Draco. He was going before the Wizengamot to be tried as a Death Eater today. Or was that yesterday? Yes, that is Draco's voice. Why is he here at his aunt's home? She has been blasted from the family tree of the Noble and Ancient House of Black. Draco's own mother has not talked to her for decades. I wonder what is going on."_

Draco continued excitedly as he and Andromeda entered the sickroom. "I feel like I have cheated the hangman. Do you know who came and stood up for me? Harry The-Boy-Who-Continues-To-Live Potter! He pointed out that I had not given them away when the snatchers brought them to the Manor. Then, Ronald the Weasel just nodded and said that Harry was right. He didn't even call me names. I feel like I am on cloud nine." Andromeda nodded and motioned toward an easy chair.

"Draco was telling me about his trial," the witch stated and sat in the rocking chair across from him.

"Uncle Severus, I am so glad to see you alive. I didn't know that you had also cheated the grim reaper." Draco was grinning, "You cheated death and I cheated the prison system. The Golden Trio testified on my behalf. Not just mine but all of the Slytherin in our year. Can you fuckin' believe it?" He noticed Andromeda wince at his language. "Sorry, Aunt Andromeda. Mother says there are times I need to guard my tongue and be more respectful when I get excited."

Severus was watching a tableau that he had never seen before. He had never seen Draco so animated, so free. He seemed to be having an adrenalin rush, a high that only came from success. Severus then shifted his gaze to Andromeda. She was smiling at her nephew. He didn't even know if they had ever met before. "G-g-g-o o-o-on," the outsider in this conversation urged. Thunder crashed outside and a lightning bolt flashed across the window.

"Oh, Mother was released and only has six months house arrest, but can use magic. Father will be in Azkaban for ten years for aiding and abetting the enemy. Providing shelter and financial backing to traitor who was trying to overturn the government. When he gets out he will be without magic for a year. That really pi- irked him since he has been essentially without his wand for a year." Draco's mood shifted as he told how his parents had fared. "The first thing Mother did was owl Aunt Andromeda and ask for an audience. They met at the Manor yesterday and made her swear on her magic not to tell that you had survived until after my trial. Aunt Andromeda had told her that if I were to be freed and able to travel, she would like for me to come see you. She knew who would be speaking for me before I even did."

Severus cocked an eyebrow as if to ask, "And who, pray tell, was that?" He smirked and his eyes actually twinkled.

"Would you like something to drink? I thought I might lay in a light tea because Severus hasn't eaten all day." Andromeda rose from her chair, "He still sleeps most of the time. It is time for Teddy to get up from his nap. Yes, I hear him." She left the room without an answer to her questions and began cooing to the baby.

"Loo," Severus said when the witch had cleared the room.

"I thought she said you couldn't move," Draco replied.

"No! Can!" his godfather answered and looked pointedly at the night stand. The lightening flashed again as Draco stood and looked around the stand for something that could be used for a toilet. "Aha," he said as he retrieved an old fashioned "thunder mug". He moved slowly over to the elder wizard and was clearly embarrassed to perform the task. Draco fumbled the portable pot under the blanket and tried to look everywhere but where his help was needed. "Closer," was all the man said. Draco was removing the pot when Andromeda returned to the room.

She said, "Take it in the en suite and leave it by the commode. Then if you wash your hands, I will let you hold your cousin."

Draco hadn't even noticed the small baby she was holding until she mentioned him. "Sit in the rocker, Draco," she instructed. "It will be more comfortable. When I return with the tea tray I want to hear the rest of your story."

Draco looked down at the smiling baby with bright aqua hair. His eyes were gray, so common for the Black family members. He shook his head at the blue hair! "Did you know this?" Draco asked. "You know that the Dark, You-Know-Who, Volde, whatever you call him, told me that Lupin and Tonks had had a baby and told Bella to kill them. She did." Draco's voice faltered and a tear appeared in his eye. "He was the best Defense instructor we had until you. He didn't deserve to die like that. Tonks was just trying to save him. God that was love." Draco's voice trailed off, then he said, "Do you think I will still have to marry Tori or will I get a chance to love?" He kept talking to nobody in particular, "You would think that having a new lease on life would allow me to have a new LEASE on life."

"Tom," Severus said.

"What?"

"Name was Tom Riddle," Severus voice scratched out.

"Oh, why no wonder he hid his muggle name."

"Who has a muggle name?" asked Andromeda as she re-entered the room carrying a large tea tray. She set it down on the desk and asked if the men wanted her to pour.

"Black, two sugars, please," said Draco using his best "tea party" voice and manners like his mother had taught him.

Severus nodded and she poured him a cup of tea and added milk and one sugar. Then she added a splash of brandy. He grinned. She set Draco's cup and a small plate with two chocolate biscuits on it near him on the bedside table. She brought Severus cup with a flexible straw in it and helped him drink. He choked. She set the cup down and lifted the man up and slid another pillow behind his back. After fidgeting a little he leaned back and sipped the tea through the straw. "Hermione brought the straws when she saw us trying to maneuver the cup. It works well." She broke off a piece of biscuit and put it into the man's mouth. As he chewed she sat in the easy chair Draco had vacated and sipped her tea.

"Continue with your story. But first who were you talking about that had a muggle name?" Andromeda urged.

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had a muggle name," Draco answered.

"Yes," Andromeda agreed. "Tom Riddle was a half-blood with delusions of grandeur."

Severus and Draco smirked. Draco continued his story, "Some of the professors came and testified for me. Flitwick, Sprout, McGonagall, even Madam Pomfrey." He named those who came. "They told the Wizengamot that all of us Slytherins had been fighting under duress and that we were under age when recruited. They said we were only trying to live and keep our parents from being killed. But the best was last. Hermione Damn-She-Gave-Them-Hell-F'in' Granger! You know how you always called her an insufferable know-it-all. I was so glad she was. She got up there and read them word for word from their own damn laws and told them they didn't have a case and if they wanted another generation of people to revolt keep the pure-bloods separate from the rest of society. She said that was a sure way to build animosity. Can you believe that she vouched for me? What did I do for her? Stood there and stared, quaking in my dragon-hide boots while my crazy Aunt Bella carved her up and Crucioed her. They took half an hour and then called McGonagall in and talked to her. When they came back they said all of the cases of anyone who had taken the dark mark before they were seventeen were exonerated, but would have to complete their N.E.W.T.s at Hogwarts. Hermione then asked about the ones that had been coerced before the first war, too. She mentioned Regulus and you specifically. They pardoned both of you after she told them what Regulus had done and where he had died and then told them you had been helping the Order all along. They said they could not send Regulus back to school. Kingsley Shacklebolt said that it might be more like punishment to send you back to school and you should just be free. We cheated death and we cheated prison. How good is that?"

"Others?" Severus asked.

"Only those who killed, tortured or harbored enemies of the state would go to Azkaban. Most of the witches will be under house arrest like Mother. Some of their terms longer than others."

Severus looked out the window and saw the colors of a double **rainbow** stretching across the sky. "Cheated death and cheated prison." He whispered.

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 **Charms Assignment #3 Anti-cheating charm write about someone who cheats.**

 **Prompt: rainbow**


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